The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of chrysanthemum plant, botanically known as Chrysanthemum x morifolium Ramat., commercially known as a garden mum, and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar denomination ‘Zanmugrape Red’. ‘Zanmugrape Red’ is a product of a breeding and selection program which had the objective of finding flower color mutants from existing parent plants. The new plant comprises a whole plant mutant of the parent chrysanthemum named ‘Zanmugrape’ (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 27,039). Plants of the new cultivar ‘Zanmugrape Red’ differ from plants of the female parent in the color of the ray-florets. The ray-florets of the parent are purple, while those of the new plant are dark red.
In order to obtain color mutants, unrooted cuttings of the parent plant were irradiated in January 2015 at Ziekenhuis, Rotterdam, the Netherlands, with gamma radiation at a dose of 15 Gy. These treated cuttings were then planted in a controlled environment (greenhouse) in Rijsenhout, the Netherlands. In this population of planted cuttings, the new cultivar was discovered as a natural flower color mutant in March 2016 by Sjoukje Heimovaara. The first act of asexual reproduction of ‘Zanmugrape Red’ was accomplished when after planting of the mutant as a motherplant in April 2016, vegetative cuttings from this motherplant were taken and propagated further in Rijsenhout, the Netherlands. In summer, about 6-8 days are needed to initiate roots in cuttings of the new cultivar, after another 5 days rooted plants are formed. The new cultivar has been found to retain its distinctive characteristics through successive propagations.